Answer:
pituitary gland
Explanation:
Follicle-stimulating hormone (also called follicle-stimulating hormone, abbreviated as FSH) is a gonadotropin hormone synthesized and secreted by gonadotropic cells in the anterior pituitary gland. FSH regulates the development, growth, maturation at puberty and the reproductive processes of the human body. FSH and luteinizing hormone (LH) act synergistically in reproduction.
In both men and women, FSH stimulates germ cell maturation.
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In women
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FSH stimulates the growth and recruitment of immature ovarian follicles in the ovary, specifically affecting granular cells. When the follicles mature, one of them becomes dominant. That releases inhibin and estradiol, and both compounds decrease the production of FSH by inhibiting the production of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) in the hypothalamus.
<u>In men
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FSH increases the production of androgen binding proteins by Sertoli cells of the testicles, and this is essential for spermatogenesis. It induces Sertoli cells to secrete inhibin, and stimulates the formation of close Sertoli-Sertoli junctions (zonula occludens).
